Needing an Out
by SamuraiCorgis
Summary: Gabriel Reyes had never considered himself close to the Overwatch team- not really. He could count on one hand the people he actually trusted. It was funny, how distant he felt from the organization he helped create. However, sitting on a ledge at the- now mostly abandoned- Watchpoint: Gibraltar, he felt more at home than ever. And more alone.


Gabriel Reyes had never considered himself close to the Overwatch team- not really. He could count on one hand the people he actually trusted. It was funny, how distant he felt from the organization he helped create. There was just something about the higher ups that left the commander feeling crowded when it came to decision making. That's why he created Blackwatch, after all. To have some freedom in things. He only ever became a soldier to help people, and having some stiff collared pricks with flag pins on their lapel, ones who had never seen a day on the battlefield, trying to tell him what to do and when to do it just wasn't something he signed up for. That wasn't what Overwatch was supposed to be.

However, sitting on a ledge at the- now _mostly_ abandoned- Watchpoint: Gibraltar, he felt more at home than ever. And more alone. He knew that things could have been so much different, but now, 8 years later, what more could he do than wish? Wish that he hadn't made some of the choices, wish that he hadn't hired _her_ , wish wish wish. It was pointless. He couldn't change the past, no matter how much he wanted to. That wasn't his ability.

Gabe really didn't remember much about the whole mess, honestly. He didn't remember a lot of things. He knew why, or thought he did, but… there was just this…. Fog. It filled his mind, smogging up most of his memories of the past 10 years or so. No matter how much he strained, there was just so much that slipped through. It's like a twisted fucking joke, he thinks, how his mind reflects his body. Not everything was lost, of course, but there were just… spots. Things he knew were missing, things that jumbled together and didn't make sense. Thank god he still had memories of… _him._ Gabe couldn't stand the idea of not remembering his best friend and partner. Especially now that he was gone.

He didn't have time to ponder those things when he was carrying out his errands for Talon. Being one of the mercenaries for the organization wasn't something he found incredibly thrilling, but it provided good cover for his cause. He was never much one for theatrics until Overwatch, but as it turned out, being a convincing actor was almost obligatory to be in a position of power. Who knew? Pretending to be something he isn't came easily to him now, a skill improved and perfected by all of those ridiculous meetings he had to endlessly attend, then and now. Even easier now, here in Talon, with his mask hiding his face at all times. No emotion to betray his true intentions.

As far as anyone in this damned organization was concerned, Gabe's personal vendetta against Overwatch was his main concern, and systematically eliminating the ex members was his only goal. If anyone with half a brain would pay close enough attention, they'd notice his "system" was a little more fine tuned than first look would have anyone believe. His kill list had piled up so far to just be, not on accident, double agents. People he had been investigating because they had ties to Talon at the time they were stated in Overwatch. Thankfully, the _idiots_ now were unaware of these agents, and if any of them had returned to Talon after Overwatch disbanded, Gabe had nice ways to make them disappear. And disappear they did.

He didn't really have the intention to hurt anyone else on the "list", but he had to sell it to the others, so sell it he did. He always made a big show of skulking around, swearing revenge. And they ate it up, the absolute fools. Gabe hated them all. So, when things got to be too much for him, he came here, to Gibraltar. The gentle lapping of the waves at the cliffside was always a bit relaxing, and the view was gorgeous. He wished he had appreciated it more when he was still around. _Ugh._ There he went again with that wishing nonsense. He was here now, appreciating it, and that's what mattered. Even if it was in solitude, he had always prefered his own company anyway.

-x-

Months passed, and Gabriel had kept himself busy, but now that Akande was free from prison, he had more time to tend to his personal whims. He visited the watchpoint often, these days, keeping an eye on that damn gorilla. Gabe never cared for him, what was his name? William? That didn't seem right. What did it matter, really. Gabriel always saw him as a little too nosy, too loud, and much too excited.

However, if there was one thing he appreciated about Wendall, it was his dedication to Overwatch, even all this time after it's disbandment. That could be useful. He found himself inching closer and closer to the area where Winthrop worked, enthralled by the details. Winslow kept very close tabs on surviving members, which was information that could be useful to Talon, if Gabe felt like giving it to them.

He didn't.

In fact, he had something quite different in mind.

-x-

He called into HQ, sounding rather disinterested as he idly told them that he was on his way back in, and to have some reinforcements ready. He was going to launch a strike.

Soon after, Talon soldiers were busting into the watchpoint base, throwing.. Wyatt? Wesley? _Winston_? Into a panic. Now all he had to do was stall enough time for Wincent to hit that damn button. Gabe played the villain role well, as always, and made sure to put on quite the show for the Talon troops to talk about when they returned home. With the recall now in place and all the damage that could be done was dealt, Gabe saw it fit to retreat, rather proud of himself for a mission well carried out.

Of course, things didn't happen right away, Gabe never expected them to. He visited the watchpoint often, scoping out who would answer the call. It was mostly familiar faces, something that made him feel oddly relaxed, though he knew he probably wasn't going to see two of the faces he wanted to see most. He also had to be more careful about where he hid out now, since he was more likely to be noticed with more people around. This was fine, he usually stuck to the shadows no matter where he was, and it was just as easy to do here.

Oxton was the first to answer the call, which didn't surprise Gabe in the slightest. She had always been so dedicated to the organization, always wanted to do whatever she could to do what was right. Gabe respected that. He understood, really. It was nice to see her reuniting with Winston, and he almost felt a smile tugging at his lips. Almost. The next few to arrive, over the span of a few days where he popped in and out, where faces he never really expected to see again: Angela, Torbjorn, Reinhardt… And with Reinhardt, christ, was that Brigitte? Gabe swore that the last time he saw her, she was child!

As much as he wanted to hide out more and watch the goings on, he was called away by Akande. It was time to get the gauntlet back. Gabe would be sure to not "mess this one up" this time, but only out of his own curiosity. It'll be interesting to see how the world upholds against Doomfist, while Overwatch tried to stay low and rebuild themselves.

-x-

Before long, faces started drifting soley into ones he didn't know. Two mystery strangers showed up a few days apart from each other, one male, one female. The female kept her hood up and from the distance Gabe couldn't get a clear look at her face, but there was something about her, her stance, her weapon, her laugh, that seemed… like home. She was someone he knew, and it wasn't until he saw a rather awkward altercation between her and Fareeha that he realized that it was Ana. She seemed like she had aged 20 years in the past 8. Maybe she had. Gabe almost felt the need to find and comfort her, but knew the risk was hardly worth the reward.

It was the male stranger that held his full attention. He kept all his face but his forehead covered with a mask, and the way his outfit was tailored gave no room for skin to peek through. His color scheme was such a stereotype, and Gabe assumed he was probably a soldier in a past life. Red, white, and blue. Typical. Such a patriotic man despite working for an underground organization that the government despised. Gabe watched him closely when he trained, something incredibly too familiar about it all. It wasn't until Tracer called him back to the base one day that Gabe understood.

"Soldier, we need ya back at base ASAP! Winston's got something neat he wants to show us all!"

"Be right there, Lena," the soldier said, in a voice that Gabe knew all too well, clicking off his comm. He finished off the bot he was sparring against and turned to go. On the back of his jacket was a very _specific_ number, printed into the fabric. 76. _That sly dog._

Soldier: 76. Gabe's breath caught in his throat. _How clever of him_ , Gabe thought. That meant that Jack… was alive. Jack was alive! He couldn't believe it. Jack Morrison, alive and well. Gabe felt such a relief. His Jack was okay…

Except that wasn't _his_ Jack. That Jack was an old soldier, coming back to a place that probably held nothing but bitter memories now. His Jack died in the explosion. He doubted he would ever really get to see that Jack again. Fuck, who was he kidding? Jack wouldn't want to see his sorry ass ever, not even if they were the last two men on Earth. And that realization hurt him worse than any physical pain ever would.

-x-

Any time spent on the base now was spent watching Jack. The others didn't seem to know who he was, and it seemed that he wanted it that way. He was more than happy to step aside and let others lead. _That's new,_ Gabe thought bitterly before a pang of guilt washed over him. It wasn't Jack's fault things happened the way they did. Jack didn't ask for any of this, he was just doing his job from the beginning. Gabe owed him a lot, and he knew it. He knew it, and there was nothing he could do about it. He wished he could apologize, to get on his knees and beg Jack to forgive him, to explain everything. He wondered if it would do any good now.

It seemed like things were starting to finally settle down for the rag-tag group of heroes, and then someone else showed up on the watchpoint, throwing everyone into an excitement again. A cowboy, who looked like he'd just been through hell and back. Gabe recognized him right away, as did all of the others on the base. Jesse McCree, famous outlaw. Still sporting his dumbass cowboy get up. He made it into the base and stopped at the hanger, blood dripping from various scratches on his face. His clothes were torn and ragged, and his metal arm seemed worse for wear. _Metal arm?_ Gabriel growled under his breath. How the hell did his boy lose his arm? Who hurt him?

"Jesse McCree!" Angela scolded as she rushed onto the scene, making the cowboy jump, "what on Earth happened to you?"

"Well, doc," Jesse said with his ever charming smile, tipping his hat back a bit with his thumb, "I jus' flew in, and boy are my arms tired. Had a bit of a crash landin', as ya can see."

This earned the cowboy a playful smack, but Angela was laughing.

"You haven't changed a bit, Jesse. Now, let's get you inside and tend to your wounds. Everyone's excited to see you again."

-x-

The final pair to show up (for now anyway) were two omnics that Gabe hadn't seen before. One of them was dressed as a Shambali, and bore a striking resemblance to Mondatta, god rest his soul. If he had one, anyway. Gabe wondered if they were related somehow. Could omnics be related? The other omnic… wasn't an omnic, Gabe realized right as McCree yelled his name from across the way.

"Genji!" the cowboy cried, arms outstretched.

Genji's head shot up from his conversation with the monk, and Gabe could hear him shout Jesse's name in reply as he practically flew across the hill and into the other man's arms. It was sweet, seeing them together again. It made Gabe feel… good. Those were his boys, and they were back together, where it seemed like they belonged. He turned to give them their space, ghosting away again to find Jack.

Slowly but surely, more heroes, old and new, showed up to the watchpoint. They greeted each other and did their best to try and work together. There were kinks, as most new organizations have, but they would end up stronger because of it. Gabe found that he could easily switch between the point and the practice range and so he did, observing how everyone fought, seeing them work through their weaknesses. He could give this information to Talon, if he so desired.

He didn't.

-x-

He knew his days hiding out on the base were numbered, but he really hadn't expected it to be so soon after things finally settled down. He wraithed up to his normal spot, a higher up place on the cliff with a brilliant view of the sunset, and was startled to find a silver and green body waiting for him.

The cyborg was sitting cross-legged on the ledge, his head bowed a bit with two fingers hovering near his nose. He was meditating. As Gabe got closer, he noticed that Genji's faceplate was gone, showing off the ninja's scarred face to the ocean before them. That was new, he couldn't remember a time when Genji ever willingly removed the mask.

"Genji," he said lowly as he approached.

"Nice place," the cyborg hummed, lowering his arm and lifting his head, "come here often?"

"I frequent the area," Gabe replied in return, folding his arms over his chest. Why did Genji have to seem so smug?

"So I have noticed," Genji said, and damn, was that a smile on his lips? "Don't worry, I won't tell."

Gabe sat in silence with the ninja for a while, both of them simply watching the waves lap at the rocks. Genji finally sighed and shifted his position, turning his head to Gabe again.

"You wanna talk? Monster to abomination?"

"Oh, Genji," Gabe said softly, "You aren't an abomination."

"I was not talking about me."

Ouch.

"Well, nice to see you have a personality again," Gabe growled, thought there was a hint of smile.

Genji laughed and leaned back on his hands, tilting his head towards the sky. There was so much about him that had changed, Gabe almost wondered if he was a different person entirely. Wherever he went when he ran off was somewhere he needed to be, clearly. Gabe was happy for him. The longer they sat together in silence, the more Gabe became anxious, questions running through his mind in thousands per second. He did want to talk, a little anyway. Where to start…

"How did you know I was here?" he settled on, turning his serious gaze to Genji's not-so-serious one.

"Mm. I see a lot more than people think I do," Genji tapped his temple with a finger, "I think it's the faceplate. No one takes me seriously with it on. You know I was able to get an upgrade to this visor because then I could be making funny faces all the time and no one would know. Absolutely no one."

This got a chuckle out of Gabe. Honestly, this Genji was something else. He was more talkative, he laughed more, he smiled all the time. It was…. Nice. Genji deserved this second chance. He frowned a little, thinking back to everything Blackwatch put Genji through. He was surprised Genji even answered the recall at all. Now he understood why. This Genji had a new perspective, and clearly wanted to assist in whatever way he could.

Whether the silence was too much for the ninja, or he really did just want to talk, Genji broke the silence once more, the playful tone slipping from his voice.

"You know… Jesse misses you a lot. He still talks about you. I let him tell me stories, even though he's told me them all now. It's… inspiring, how much he looked up to you."

"I'm not here to keep tabs on people, Genji," Gabe said cautiously, "I mean, I _do_ that, but that's not why I'm here."

"Mm," Genji sighed, heaving his shoulders, "I've been through enough awkward silences in my life to know when someone needs an out."

"I don't need an out."

"Then why do you keep coming here?" Genji locked his gaze on Gabe, boring through him. His eyes were brown again, still red enough, though. There was a fire in them, the same one as before, from Blackwatch, but fueled now by something other than rage and revenge. It almost made Gabe shiver, how intense he looked. Almost.

Before he could answer, a voice rang out over the clearing. Jesse's voice, to be exact, calling out for Genji. Genji perked up at the sound, his face lighting up once more. He stood up and stretched, Gabe wondering if that was necessary or if he was just showing off. Genji grinned down at him and scooped up his face plate.

"I promise, I will not tell a soul. But I can only keep them complacent for so long. You're time is running out, Reyes."

Gabe glanced up at that. It had been years since someone had called him by his name. It felt, wrong. Like it wasn't him anymore. He simply frowned at Genji, a small growl rising in his throat. The cyborg, however, was unfazed, and looked up when Jesse called for him again. He hummed softly and glanced over again, stepping over the other man to put his foot in a good hold to climb back up the cliff.

"You know," he said as he began his ascent, "yours misses you, too."

And with that, the ninja was gone. Gabe shook his head and scowled, looking back over the ocean as the sun sank below the horizon and shadowed the world around him. Everything was so peaceful on the watchpoint. They really didn't need him. No one really _needed_ him. He weighed Genji's words in his mind as he watched the moon rise and the stars come out to play. He should leave. Leave the watchpoint, leave Jack, leave this all behind him like a bad memory and never look back. He could leave, very easily, if he wanted.

He didn't.


End file.
